This invention relates to sulfur curable ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymer compositions.
Elastomeric ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymers known heretofore can be vulcanized only with peroxides; they do not undergo sulfur cure. Elastomers that are sulfur curable have distinct advantages over those that are peroxide curable only. For example, operating hazards exist using peroxides to cure elastomers. Further, the resulting peroxide cured elastomers have an objectionable odor, and, more importantly, useful additives frequently incorporated in elastomers to improve physical properties, e.g., processing oils and plasticizers, cannot be used with peroxide cures because they compete for the peroxide and prevent attainment of an adequate state of cure. Although ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymers have been modified by the addition of halogen-containing functional groups or reaction with sulfonic acids to generate sulfur cure sites on the copolymer, these polymers are quite expensive to manufacture. There is a need for sulfur curable ethylene/vinyl acetate elastomers having good physical properties.